Violence in northern Ethiopia pushing health system towards collapse: WHO

Renewed fighting between rebels from northern Tigray and ​the government in Addis Ababa has shattered a 2022 peace deal.

The WHO chief warns that medical services in northern Ethiopia are coming under increased strain due to the conflict [File: Samuel Getachew/Al Jazeera]

Fighting and drone strikes in northern Ethiopia are pushing the country’s fragile health system towards collapse, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned.

Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus reported in a statement released on Monday that the conflict between rebels from the northern Tigray region and the government in Addis Ababa had killed several civilians in recent days and strained medical facilities.

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“As fighting continues, more people are likely to lose access to essential healthcare, including emergency services, maternal and child healthcare and treatment for diseases,” he warned.

At least 15 people, several of them children, died in a series of drone strikes that hit a camp for displaced civilians in ⁠⁠Ethiopia’s Amhara region on Friday, sources involved in a rescue operation told the Reuters news agency.

Tedros, the world’s highest-profile Tigrayan, confirmed that children were among those reported to be killed at the Jaari 2 displacement camp in Amhara. In Rama, in neighbouring Tigray, several people were killed while seeking food.

Tedros gave no overall casualty tolls from the attacks and did not identify the perpetrators. However, he warned that drone attacks and civilian casualties were becoming more frequent across Ethiopia, worsening public health and humanitarian issues.

“The violence in northern Ethiopia is pushing an already fragile health system closer to collapse,” he said. “Hospitals face shortages of health workers, medicines and equipment. Ambulance services are severely limited. Insecurity is obstructing the delivery of life-saving medical supplies to some areas.”

The WHO and other United Nations agencies are working to deliver additional supplies, Tedros said. He called for civilians to be protected and for health workers and products to be allowed to reach those in need.

Renewed fighting between an alliance of rebels from the northern Tigray region and the government in Addis Ababa has all but shattered the November 2022 peace agreement between the two groups, stoking fears of a wider conflict.

提格雷北部叛军与亚的斯亚贝巴政府之间再次爆发冲突，打破了2022年达成的和平协议。

世界卫生组织总干事警告称，由于冲突，埃塞俄比亚北部的医疗服务正面临越来越大的压力。[图片：Samuel Getachew/半岛电视台]

世界卫生组织（世卫组织）总干事警告称，埃塞俄比亚北部地区的战斗和无人机袭击正将该国脆弱的卫生系统推向崩溃的边缘。

世卫组织总干事谭德塞周一发表声明称，来自北部提格雷地区的叛军与亚的斯亚贝巴政府之间的冲突，近日已造成多名平民死亡，并使医疗设施不堪重负。

列表 1/4：数百名埃塞俄比亚人越境进入肯尼亚，以躲避地区冲突

提格雷叛军指挥官誓言与埃塞俄比亚政府作战，并敦促其解除武装（名单2/4）

埃塞俄比亚接收12架俄罗斯苏-35战机，并计划采购S-400防空导弹系统（共4条，此为第3条）。

问题 4（共 4 个）：俄罗斯为何向埃塞俄比亚派遣战斗机和防空系统？

他警告说：“随着战斗的持续，越来越多的人可能会失去获得基本医疗保健的机会，包括紧急服务、妇幼保健和疾病治疗。”

据参与救援行动的消息人士向路透社透露，周五，埃塞俄比亚阿姆哈拉州一个流离失所平民营地遭到一系列无人机袭击，造成至少 15 人死亡，其中包括几名儿童。

世界上最知名的提格雷人特德罗斯证实，据报道在阿姆哈拉州贾里2号难民营遇难的人员中包括儿童。在邻近的提格雷州拉马市，一些人在寻找食物时被杀害。

谭德塞没有公布袭击造成的总伤亡人数，也没有指明袭击者身份。但他警告说，无人机袭击和平民伤亡在埃塞俄比亚各地日益频繁，加剧了公共卫生和人道主义问题。

他说：“埃塞俄比亚北部地区的暴力冲突正使本已脆弱的医疗体系雪上加霜，濒临崩溃。医院面临医护人员、药品和设备短缺的问题。救护车服务也受到严重限制。安全局势恶化阻碍了救命医疗物资运往部分地区。”

谭德塞表示，世卫组织和其他联合国机构正在努力提供更多物资。他呼吁保护平民，并允许医务人员和医疗产品送达有需要的人手中。

来自北部提格雷地区的叛军联盟与亚的斯亚贝巴政府之间再次爆发冲突，几乎彻底破坏了双方于 2022 年 11 月达成的和平协议，加剧了人们对冲突扩大的担忧。